


Careful

by airbendertylee



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Airbender Ty Lee, Angst, F/F, Friends to Lovers, Multi, Post-Canon, takes place after smoke and shadow but you dont need to read smoke and shadow, toph is a menace, wlw, zuko is happy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-04
Updated: 2020-07-04
Packaged: 2021-03-04 21:41:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,326
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25073290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/airbendertylee/pseuds/airbendertylee
Summary: Ty Lee carries the weight of generations of secrets. Mai thinks she doesn't need to do it alone.
Relationships: Aang/Katara (Avatar), Mai/Ty Lee (Avatar), Sokka/Suki/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 17
Kudos: 228





	Careful

Suki had patrol duty again tonight but she didn’t mind because tonight she was partnered with Ty Lee, whose company she always enjoyed. The daily life of a palace guard was generally pretty dull, especially compared to the time she helped save the world. Ty Lee kept things interesting though.

“Why do we always get patrol duty,” Suki complained.

“Because Zuko trusts the Kyoshi Warriors more than the Fire Nation Guards,” Ty Lee said matter of factly, despite walking on her hands. 

“So shouldn’t we be the ones guarding his quarters?” Suki asked.

Ty Lee flipped back to her feet, “The other Kyoshi Warriors are guarding his quarters. I think Zuko doesn’t want to show any favoritism by letting us always be the ones who hang out with him in the palace.”

“But we are his favorites,” Suki huffed, “We’re actually his friends. He should favor us.”

“Is the leader of the Kyoshi Warriors trying to say she should have special treatment just because she’s friends with the Firelord?” Ty Lee teased and poked her friend.

Suki swatted Ty Lee’s hand away, “You know I’d never let Zuko actually treat us better than the others.”

“I know. I just like to give you a hard time,” Ty Lee beamed. 

Since the war had ended and Ty Lee joined the Kyoshi Warriors, Ty Lee and Suki had gotten very close. Suki even thought of Ty Lee as her best friend. It was weird to think they fought the first time they met and Ty Lee had helped Azula take her prisoner. 

Ty Lee had also helped Mai after Mai allowed them to escape prison and that has to count for something. 

Suki was quick to forgive the past. If she could forgive Zuko for burning down her village because he helped her escape prison, she could forgive Ty Lee. 

There was also always the fact that Ty Lee was an impossible person to hate.

They had walked in comfortable silence for a while before it happened. A blue light flashed and Suki could only think of one person. Ty Lee seemed to have come to the same conclusion when she opened her fan and slashed it through the air.

Suki was confused at first. Even if Azula was here that move wouldn’t have stopped her from a distance. Ty Lee had better fighting instincts than that. 

But then Suki saw the leaves rustling in the distance. The branches bent back as if a typhoon was brutalizing the coast for just a second. She felt her jaw drop and turned to Ty Lee who was looking back at her pale, as the moon with fright. 

Before Suki could say a word, Ty Lee grabbed her by the wrists, eyes begging, “You can never tell anyone.”

Suki nodded, still at a loss for words. _Aang isn’t the last airbender, _she thought.__

__\-----_ _

__Ty Lee was beating herself up over how reckless she just was. She could feel Suki’s eyes on her as they silently searched for the source of the blue light. She could not look at Suki because she knew as soon as she did Suki would start asking questions that Ty Lee was not allowed to answer._ _

__They made it to where they saw the blue light just to find Kiyi, with a box of fireworks._ _

__“What are you doing, Kiyi?! You shouldn’t even be out of bed and you’re out here playing with explosives? You could have been killed” Ty Lee’s heard herself sounding more aggravated than she normally would have been, especially with a child. She tried to calm down, “Let’s get you back to bed.”_ _

__“Are you going to tell my mom?” Kiyi asked, with worry in her eyes._ _

__Feeling bad for exploding at the kid, Ty Lee sighed, “We will keep your secret but you have to promise not to wander around alone at night -”_ _

__“I promise!” Kiyi interrupted._ _

__“-and promise not to play with fireworks without supervision,” Ty Lee continued._ _

__“Okay! I pinky promise it won’t happen again,” Kiyi held out her pinky and Ty Lee locked it with her own, then took her hand_ _

__“Let’s get you to bed,” Suki grabbed the girl’s other hand and the Kyoshi Warriors escorted the princess back to her room._ _

__When Kiyi was safely back under the covers, Suki and Ty Lee left her to sleep._ _

__When they were far enough away that no one could hear, Suki asked, “Are we going to talk about that?”_ _

__Ty Lee’s heart started to pound. Her head got light and the room started to spin._ _

__\-----_ _

__Suki caught her before Ty Lee could hit the floor._ _

___I should’ve just not asked her about it_ , Suki kicked herself internally. She pulled Ty Lee’s arm around her shoulder and hoisted her unconscious body up. She struggled to get Ty Lee back to their bedchambers. Ty Lee may be small but even someone as tiny as her is hard to carry on when they are unconscious. _ _

__Suki had nearly made it when one of the servants spotted them. A pretty young woman, about their age with chestnut hair and large, grey-brown eyes. Her body and face were round._ _

__“Should I get the healers?” The servant asked with concern._ _

__“Um - I think it’s best if you didn’t” Suki grunted under Ty Lee’s weight._ _

__“Can I at least help you get her to bed?” Her voice was as kind as her face._ _

__Before Ty Lee could answer the servant was hoisting Ty Lee up with her other arm and the relief on Suki’s back made it hard to argue._ _

__They awkwardly shuffled the rest of the way to Ty Lee’s chambers. Suki was even more thankful for the help when it was time to lift Ty Lee into bed. She was not sure she would have been able to do that by herself._ _

__“I’ll go get her some water and some food for when she wakes up,” The servant stated before turning towards the door._ _

__“Wait!” Suki stopped her, “You really don’t have to do that.”_ _

__“It’s my job, ma’am and she clearly needs some help. I’m happy to do it,” The servant shrugged._ _

__“Can you at least tell me your name?” Suki asked, making a mental note to tell Zuko to give this girl a raise._ _

__“It’s Souma, ma’am,” She answered quickly._ _

__“Thank you, Souma. Also, you don’t have to call me ma’am.” Suki said, trying to be as nice as possible to this sweet young woman._ _

__“You’re welcome, ma-” Souma stopped herself and Suki smiled at her._ _

__\---_ _

__Ty Lee woke to Suki sitting beside her bed, and watched as some of the worry disappeared from her face._ _

__Suki took her hand, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have pushed you.”_ _

__Flashes of the night’s earlier events flashed in her mind, “You didn’t do anything wrong.”_ _

__“It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it. I won’t bring it up again and your secret is safe with me,” Suki assured her._ _

__“Thank you,” Ty Lee felt weak from her fainting spell and Suki seemed to read her mind._ _

__“Here’s some water and food, Souma got some from the kitchen for you,” Suki offered but Ty Lee’s mind froze._ _

__“Souma?” She asked, trying to remain calm and not given anything away. She took the glass of water from Suki and took a few large chugs._ _

__“Yeah, she’s a really sweet kitchen servant. She helped me get you to your bed,” Suki explained._ _

___Oh no,_ Ty Lee thought, _Souma shouldn’t be here. It’s not safe._ Her hand shook as she placed the glass on her bedside table. Suki did not seem to notice, or if she did she did not seem to find it strange._ _

__

__\---_ _

__The next morning Ty Lee set out to find Zuko, which was easy enough because he was feeding the turtleducks as he usually did this time of day._ _

__“Hey Zuko,” Ty Lee said casually, grabbing a loaf of bread out of the basket Zuko was holding and tearing a piece off to throw into the pond._ _

__“Hey Ty Lee, it’s good to see you,” Zuko smiled, throwing a piece of bread to the smallest of the turtleducklings._ _

__“It’s good to see you to,” And it really was. She rarely got to actually talk to Zuko because he was so busy, “I need to ask you something.”_ _

__“Not you too!” Zuko joked, “Everyone wants a favor. doesn’t anyone just want to chat?”_ _

__“It’s not much of a favor I just need your permission for something,” Ty Lee explained._ _

__“Oh, Ty Lee, you have my permission to do whatever you want as long as you’re not helping my sister,” Zuko laughed._ _

__“It’s not helping your sister. Those days are far behind me but I think you may still want to hear it before you say yes,” Ty Lee felt incredibly awkward, knowing what she was about to ask._ _

__Zuko looked confused, “Okay, so what is it?”_ _

__Ty Lee took in a big breath, gathering the courage, “Can I invite Mai to the palace? I - ”_ _

__Zuko burst out laughing, “That’s all? Of course you can invite her.”_ _

__“I didn’t know because you guys broke up and I didn’t want to - “ Ty Lee knew she was about to ramble for too long so she was thankful that Zuko interjected._ _

__“Things are fine with me and Mai. I’m seeing other people but I still write her. We didn’t work out but that’s okay. You two are my oldest friends and are always welcome here,” Zuko smiled assuringly at Ty Lee and Ty Lee felt stupid for worrying that Zuko could have said no. Then he continued, “You could ask her out if you wanted to.”_ _

__Ty Lee’s face burned red. Zuko was just making a throwaway joke but it was more on the nose than he intended. She tried to regain her composure._ _

__“Thank you, Zuko,” Ty Lee meant it. She was so grateful for everything Zuko has done for her. After all she did to help Azula, Zuko was understanding and not only did he not hold that against her, he actively tried to give her a place in his home. Zuko had grown so much since they were kids. His aura went from a dismal grey with random bursts of bright red, to a more steady mix between red and violet. He seemed to be at peace and she couldn’t be more happy for him._ _

__“Of course, Ty. Will you stay with me while I feed these little guys?” Zuko gestured to the turtleducks quacking up at them._ _

__“I am not one to disobey the Firelord’s orders,” Ty Lee joked._ _

__Zuko looked at her for a second before they both burst out laughing. They fed the turtleducks until they ran out of bread. Zuko immediately got hounded by advisors when they were done. Ty Lee thought to herself that the others had orders not to disturb him during this morning routine. Zuko gave her a little wave as he was shepherded toward his first meeting of the day._ _

__Ty Lee suddenly felt heavy with her truth that should have made her feel weightless. Maybe it is time for the truth to be told, but it was not her choice. There were too many others at stake._ _

__\---_ _

__Mai came as quickly as she could. Ty Lee’s letter, despite trying to seem normal, made Mai suspicious. Ty lee told her she needed her there. Ty Lee had never said anything like that before. Ty lee was independent and totally capable of taking care of herself. Plus, she had the Kyoshi Warriors now, what could she possibly need Mai for?_ _

__When she arrived at the palace the Kyoshi Warriors were waiting. It took her a second to spot Ty Lee because they all wore identical outfits and makeup. Ty Lee ran to her and pulled her in for a hug._ _

__“Nice to see you too,” Mai’s face betrayed her as she smiled down at Ty Lee, who was still holding her tight. Mai tried to ignore how her heart skipped a beat at the embrace and wrapped her arms around Ty Lee._ _

__“I’m so glad you’re here,” Ty Lee breathed into Mai’s chest. She sounded so relieved. Ty Lee has been living a normal life as part of the palace’s guard of Kyoshi Warriors. She had no reason to be worried._ _

___Something is wrong,_ Mai thought._ _

__Mai tried not to think too much right then and just breathed in the scent of Ty Lee’s hair, the familiar scent of jasmine and citrus calming her._ _

__“I’m glad to be here Ty,” Mai said. They stood like that for a while before Suki cleared her throat._ _

__“I’ll show you to your room,” Ty Lee said, breaking the embrace first for once, leaving Mai longing for more._ _

__Ty Lee grabbed her hand and led her through the palace._ _

__\---_ _

___Okay, Mai’s here now,_ Ty Lee thought. _I didn’t think this through.__ _

__Ty Lee only knew she wanted Mai there. She knew she needed Mai but she was not allowed to tell her anything. Yeah, she made her seem safe and that is probably why she acted so impulsively and invited her to the palace._ _

__But Mai is probably going to ask questions._ _

___It was selfish. I put others in danger. Souma is here._ _ _

___Souma is here._ _ _

__She held Mai’s hand tight the whole way to Mai’s room._ _

__

__When they were finally alone in Mai’s room, Mai sat down on her bed, still holding Ty Lee’s hand. Mai broke the silence, “So why did you invite me here?”_ _

__“I missed you!” Squeezing Mai’s hand, Ty Lee cheerfully lied. Well not entirely. She missed Mai dearly but that was not why she invited Mai here now._ _

__“Ty Lee,” Mai sighed, “I know you well enough to know something is wrong.”_ _

__Ty Lee avoided her gaze._ _

__“Tell me what’s going on,” Holding Ty Lee’s hand tight, Mai tried to order but sounded more desperate than in charge._ _

__“I can’t Mai. Just please - be here for me,” Ty Lee pleaded._ _

__Mai pulled her onto the bed next to her, lying facing one another, “You don’t have to keep secrets from me, but you don't have to tell me everything yet either.”_ _

__They fell asleep that way, hand in hand, facing each other._ _

__

__\---_ _

__Ty Lee awoke in the middle of the night thirsty as she usually is at this time. She gingerly let go of Mai’s hand and got out of bed without disturbing her. That kind of thing was easy for her._ _

__She moved her way through the dark, unfamiliar room. Mai’s room was one of the ones they’d stayed in as children visiting the royal palace but it had been a long time since she stayed in one of them. They were all a little different too. She tried not to bump anything and wake Mai up on her way to the restroom to get some water._ _

__She opened the door to the bathroom and saw a pitcher in the moonlight in front of the vanity mirror. Just as she picked it up she heard a sound and a large figure jumped out of the shadows from her right. She did the only thing she could and blasted him away with a powerful gust of wind._ _

__“So it is true,” A hoarse, unfamiliar, voice taunted her getting up from the pile of towels she knocked him into, “You really are an airbender.”_ _

__He spat the word airbender as if it was the worst insult he could think of. Ty Lee cursed herself for not knowing the layout of the palace better. She would have blasted him into something much harder if she had just been familiar._ _

__“Did you really think you could hide this forever? The airbenders deserve to be eradicated. They’re weak,” He mocked._ _

__Ty Lee tried to air blast him again but he moved to the side in front of the vanity mirror, dodging her attack._ _

__“You’re weak,” He said before the flash of silver came through the door and pinned him to the wall._ _

__It took Ty Lee a second to realize his neck was nailed to the wall with a knife. Blood was pouring down all over the floor._ _

__Ty Lee looked up to see Mai’s face stricken with panic and confusion._ _

__“We have to get him out of here,” was all Ty Lee could muster._ _

__Silently, Mai and Ty Lee grabbed the sheets of the bed and some towels from the pile Ty Lee had knocked over with her air blasts._ _

__Mai took her fingers to the vein of the man’s neck and nodded. He was dead. Mai ripped the knife out and grabbed under his shoulders to keep him up, careful not to get more blood everywhere._ _

__They carefully rolled him into the sheets and towels. Then paused._ _

__“We have to get him out of here.” Mai whispered and looked at the window, “Sneak around there, see what’s going on, and I’ll push him out. Then I’ll crawl through.”_ _

__Ty Lee did as she was instructed. She muffled the sounds of her movements through the hallway as she surveyed the situation. It was a quiet night. The Fire Nation guards were nowhere to be seen._ _

__Ty Lee got to the window and knocked lightly, which still caused Mai to jump in response._ _

__Mai unlocked the window and slowly pushed the body through into Ty Lee’s arms._ _

___A dead body,_ she thought, _because of my secret.__ _

__She gingerly placed the body down and got up to help Mai through the window. Ty Lee pulled her in for a hug as soon as she was on her feet._ _

__Ty Lee grabbed the upper body of the man wrapped in sheets and Mai grabbed the legs._ _

__“I know the patrol’s route,” Ty Lee whispered, “Follow me.”_ _

__They made their way through the palace grounds in silence. Careful with every step. Keenly aware of all of their surroundings. It seemed like ages before they finally reached the beach._ _

__“We need rocks,” Mai said quietly._ _

__Ty Lee was confused at first but then she realized what Mai meant._ _

__They gathered as many rocks as they could from around the beach and stuffed them into the layers surrounding the attacker._ _

__Eventually Mai and Ty Lee made eye contact. Mai nodded and Ty Lee understood. They grabbed each end of the body and made their way to the dock. They found a small canoe and hoisted the man onto it. In silence, they paddled out far into the water. Once they were far past where the waves crashed, even in the largest storms, they rolled the body over the side of the boat, watching it slowly sink into the dark water._ _

__Neither were capable of speech until they got to shore. The beach was wide and empty. They were alone._ _

__\----_ _

__“Okay, Ty Lee, there’s no possibility of anyone overhearing us here. You need to explain what the hell just happened.” Mai could hear her own urgency, much more panicked than her usual tone. She could usually hide her emotions, even in dire circumstances, but this was different._ _

__“Mai. It’s okay. There’s no need to -”_ _

__Ty Lee’s attempt to calm down Mai just irritated her further, prompting her to interrupt, “Ty Lee! Tell me everything.”_ _

__Ty Lee took in a deep breath, “Well, I am an airbender.”_ _

__“No shit,” Mai said sarcastically, though her exasperation with Ty Lee’s tendency to dance around the issue at hand was dwindling with Ty Lee’s admission. Mai collected herself, “How is that possible?”_ _

__“Well my great-grandmother was an Air Nomad,” Ty Lee stated bluntly. Mai just looked at her, waiting for some elaboration so Ty Lee continued. “When the raids of the Air Temples started a hundred years ago, some of the adults were able to get children onto sky bison and to safety. My great-grandmother’s mentor was close with a Fire Nation couple so she was sent there with a letter explaining everything. The couple took her in and raised her as their own, but she was never allowed to bend again because it was too risky.”_ _

__Mai felt a pang of sorrow. Though she was not a bender, she knew how much of their identity benders got from their bending. It would be worse than if someone took away her knives._ _

__“She grew up to be beautiful and caught the eye of a Fire Nation noble, my great-grandfather. He asked for her hand in marriage but there was never really a choice for her. The consequences of saying no were too high. Even after they were married, she couldn’t risk telling her own husband the truth about her,” Mai could hear the heartache in Ty Lee’s voice._ _

__“That’s horrible,” Mai did not have much trouble empathizing with the idea of being forced to marry someone. She always assumed that if Zuko did not choose her, she would be married to a random noble for political purposes. Her and Zuko had been broken up for a while now but with him as Firelord, she knew he would stop any arranged marriage she did not want. She was thankful for that._ _

__Ty Lee nodded solemnly and continued, “My great-grandmother only told my grandmother, her only child, just in case. My grandmother didn’t even tell my dad and my dad’s siblings. It wasn’t until I started showing signs that my grandmother explained it to my dad. I am the only one in the family that can bend. It’s my family’s biggest secret.”_ _

__“Does anyone outside of your family know?” Mai asked._ _

__“Suki does,” Ty Lee said with guilt. Mai tried to ignore all of the conflicting feelings that brought up. “She and I were patrolling the palace grounds when I thought I saw a blue light and overreacted.”_ _

___Blue light,_ Mai thought, _probably not an overreaction._ Still, the jealousy started to take over, “Why didn’t you tell me?”_ _

__“I’m not supposed to tell anyone! I would put countless others at risk. My great-grandmother wasn’t the only survivor and many of them had children too. We’ve all been hiding in plain sight in the Fire Nation for a century.” Ty Lee was fighting back tears._ _

__“Zuko is the Firelord now. He isn’t going to do anything to harm innocent people. And Aang… he would want to know about this. He would want to teach them - “_ _

__Ty Lee cut Mai off, “I know Zuko and Aang would want to help but anything they do will just raise awareness and that puts all of the descendants at risk. They can’t protect everyone. The New Ozai Society would definitely want to kill all of us.”_ _

__Mai’s heart dropped at the mention of the New Ozai Society, “You didn’t tell me because you don’t trust me.”_ _

__Mai watched as Ty Lee tried to scramble for an excuse, “No, Mai - that’s not it. I wanted to tell you but I-”_ _

__“I need to go. Don’t follow me.”_ _

__“Wait Mai - please - don’t tell anyone.” Ty Lee pleaded._ _

__Mai let out a cold laugh, “You should know I would never.” And with that she turned and left Ty Lee alone on the beach, not looking back to see Ty Lee crumple to the ground with her head between her knees._ _

__\---_ _

__They didn’t see each other again until Aang, Katara, Sokka, and Toph arrived to discuss world affairs with Zuko and everyone was there to greet them. Ty Lee watched as Mai walked to the opposite side of the Kyoshi Warriors, clearly trying to avoid her._ _

___If she’s not going to talk to me, why is she still here?_ Ty Lee thought._ _

__She tried to catch Mai’s eyes but Mai was keeping her eyes firmly on the approaching flying bison in the sky. As they landed, Zuko stepped forward and said a little too formally, “Welcome to the palace.”_ _

__Aang jumped off Appa’s neck with his usual ease and got to Zuko first, pulling him into a tight bear hug, “Zuko! We’ve missed you.”_ _

__The others piled on as they got there. Toph laughed, “Speak for yourself, Twinkletoes.”_ _

__“It’s good to see you too, Toph,” Zuko grinned as Toph punched him firmly in the bicep as the group hug pulled apart._ _

__“Toph, you really should probably not assault the Firelord in front of his guards,” Katara said looking around to see if any of the guards were going to interject._ _

__Toph rolled her eyes, “They can try and stop me.”_ _

__Zuko turned to Sokka, who had not said anything yet and took his hand, “You’re finally here.”_ _

__Suki broke ranks with the Kyoshi Warriors and tackled the two of them. Sokka kissed her on the cheek, “I’ve missed you two so much.”_ _

__Zuko blushed a little._ _

___I do not have time to figure out what is going on there,_ Ty Lee thought, _but I guess I am happy for them. I’ll have to ask Suki about this later.__ _

__Ty Lee was still wondering about her friends’ love lives when Zuko addressed her, “Ty Lee, can you show Aang, Toph, and Katara to their rooms? Suki and I will take Sokka.”_ _

__“Of course,” Ty Lee chirped, “You can follow me.”_ _

__Ty Lee tried to telepathically ask Suki what that is about as she herded the others out of the courtyard. Suki’s face said she would explain later.  
They had to walk right by Mai to get to the door that led to the guest chambers. _ _

___Why did Zuko have to give ME this job of all of the Kyoshi Warriors?_ _ _

__Ty Lee could not wait until she was alone with Suki, so as soon as they were inside and away from people who could hear she asked, “So Suki, Sokka, AND Zuko?”_ _

__“Yeah, it’s a thing,” Toph shrugged._ _

__“I still can’t believe there’s two people willing to be in a relationship with my brother,” Katara said, shaking her head._ _

__“Sokka’s a looker,” Aang explained._ _

__“Say that again and I’ll break up with you,” Katara laughed._ _

__“What? You look alike and I have a type,” Aang said, trying to sound diplomatic._ _

__Katara’s face turned bright red, “Never say that again.”_ _

__“Okay. Okay. Sorry I will never say that again,” Aang conceded with a laugh._ _

__“Here are your rooms,” Ty Lee explained as they reached their destination, “Mai is visiting too and she’s staying across the hall if you want to catch up.”_ _

__Toph lit up, “Yes! I love talking to Mai.”_ _

__“You love to bother Mai, Toph,” Katara scolded._ _

__“Same thing!” Toph was positively giddy._ _

__\---_ _

__A few hours after the others arrived, Mai was sitting peacefully in her room when the door flew open, causing Mai to stand up abruptly and grab a knife from her sleeve._ _

__“Put the knife down, Stabby. It’s just me,” Toph said._ _

__“All the more reason to have a knife,” Mai groaned._ _

__“What are you even doing here?” Toph asked with her usual bluntness, not even taking a second before getting to the point._ _

__“I was invited,” Mai said, cooly._ _

__“By who?” Toph badgered, “I know Zuko didn’t invite you.”_ _

__“Agni, you’re annoying,” Mai rolled her eyes._ _

__“And you’re avoiding the question,” Toph smirked._ _

__“I am not,” Mai huffed._ _

__Toph laughed, “I can tell you’re lying.”_ _

___How did I get stuck alone with this one,_ “You know I have pockets filled with knives?”_ _

__Toph laughed again, “I can metalbend, Stabby.”_ _

___This must be torture._ _ _

__“Can you go ahead and tell me what’s going on with that bendy girl? I’m going to find out anyway,” Toph said, casually, “I heard your heartbeat when she walked by earlier.”_ _

___I know you know her name._ _ _

__“What are you talking about?” Mai asked, feigning innocence. _How did this little punk always know everything. It was beyond irritating.__ _

__“Wow, you just asked a question and I could STILL tell you’re lying. Can you hand me a mango,” Mai grabbed on from the bowl on the table and handed it to Toph. Toph took a bite of it and stated, “Okay so I’m just going to take some guesses and you can respond to them.”_ _

__“I don’t want to do this,” Mai tried to argue._ _

__“I didn’t want you to hunt down me and my friends while we were trying to save the world but we all have to deal with shit sometimes,” Toph took another bite._ _

__“Are you going to bring that up for the rest of my life?” Mai groaned._ _

__“Probably,” Toph said with an irritating smugness, “It’s less likely if you just tell me everything now.”_ _

__“I can’t tell you everything,” Mai slumped down in a chair._ _

__“The first honest thing you’ve said all night,” Toph cocked her head, clearly more curious than she was before._ _

__“Some things aren’t your secrets to tell,” Mai replied, barely above a whisper._ _

__“You can tell me the parts you can say,” Toph offered, her tone much softer. She sounded like she genuinely wanted to help._ _

__“No, there’s nothing I can talk about,” Mai argued._ _

__“I can still tell when you’re lying,” Toph was gentle now, not trying to push any buttons but still persistent. She paused for a second before continuing, “She feels the same way about you, ya know.”_ _

__Mai was thankful that Toph was blind for a second because she could not see how red her face had gotten until she realized Toph could feel her heartbeat and all of that was out the window._ _

__Toph took another bite of the mango and dropped the rest on the floor, smirking “My work here is done.”_ _

__\---_ _

__Suki knocked on Ty Lee’s door._ _

__“One minute,” Ty Lee called. A few moments later, she opened the door, drying her hair with a towel, “Hey Suki.”_ _

__“Hey Ty. Can I come in?” Suki asked, peaking around her to see if they were alone._ _

__“Yeah of course,” Ty Lee held the door open for her and Suki made her way to Ty Lee’s bed. Suki plopped down and gestured for Ty Lee to come join._ _

__Ty Lee locked the door and came and sat at the foot of her bed._ _

__“Okay so are you going to talk to me about what’s going on with Mai?” Suki did not feel dillydallying._ _

__“What do you mean?” Ty Lee asked, quickly redirecting, “Are we going to talk about you and Sokka and Zuko?”_ _

__Suki knew Ty Lee would deflect, “Me, Zuko, and Sokka are all together. Not much to talk about but we’re trying not to make a huge deal about it because Zuko is the firelord and whoever he dates is a scandal even if he wasn’t with both a Earth Kingdom girl and a Water Tribe guy. Sokka told us he’s planning to stay here for a while, if you want some news.”_ _

__Ty Lee smiled._ _

__“You have to explain what’s going on to me now,” Suki said, matter-of-factly in a whisper, “You invited Mai here right after that night and you barely saw her before you two started ignoring each other.”_ _

__Ty Lee grabbed a pillow to hide her face._ _

__“I know about the … _airbending,_ ” Suki whispered everything, but barely breathed the last word, “You can tell me about whatever’s going on. Your secrets are safe with me.”_ _

__Ty Lee let the pillow drop a little, “Mai found out.”_ _

__Oh, Suki thought before she found her voice, “What happened?”_ _

__Ty Lee’s eyes flashed with fear before she collected herself, “She saw me bend.”_ _

__Suki could tell she was not getting the full story but she did not want to press too hard. She waited for Ty Lee to elaborate._ _

__“She was upset I hadn’t told her, and that you knew first,” Ty Lee was fighting back tears, “She thought I didn’t trust her because of her dad.”_ _

___The New Ozai Society,_ Suki thought. _I wouldn’t have blamed Ty Lee for mistrusting Mai considering her father’s involvement.__ _

__“Why did you bend in front of Mai?” Suki asked, confused._ _

__“Someone attacked me in her bathroom the first night she was here,” Ty Lee explained. “He said ‘so it is true' after I bended at him.”_ _

__“Wait so people know?” Suki said, louder than she meant to, causing Ty Lee to hit her with the pillow she was holding._ _

__“Apparently,” Ty Lee whispered._ _

__“How did they find out?” Suki wondered, “Who else knows?”_ _

__“As far as I know, just me, you, my dad, my sisters, my grandmother, Souma, and Mai. Any of them being the one…” Ty Lee trailed off._ _

__“Wait - Souma? The girl who works in the kitchen?” Suki was doing her best to keep her voice down._ _

__“Yeah she’s an airbender too,” Ty Lee said and shoved the pillow over Suki’s mouth and held it there until Suki calmed down, “You okay now?”_ _

__“Yeah - sorry - this is a lot to take in,” Suki did her best to whisper, “What happened to the person who attacked you?”_ _

__“Mai’s knife. We threw him in the ocean,” Ty Lee said, sheepishly._ _

__It took every bit of Suki’s self control not to yell, “So Mai helped you hide the body?”_ _

__“Yeah,” Ty Lee smiled for just a second before her face fell again, “Then she got upset that I hid this from her and hasn’t talked to me since and probably hates me.”_ _

__“Helping you hide a body is a pretty ride-or-die thing to do, Ty. There’s no way she hates you. I think you just need to talk to her,” Suki tried to be a voice of reason. Ty Lee and Mai had been through so much together; they could definitely get through this._ _

__“I don’t know what to say,” Ty Lee sighed._ _

__“Start with ‘I’m sorry’ and go from there,” Suki suggested._ _

__“I guess that’s all I can do.”_ _

__\---_ _

__Ty Lee ran into Toph in the hallway outside Mai’s chambers._ _

__“Hey Bendy. Looking for your girlfriend?” Toph asked with a smirk._ _

__“She’s not my girlfriend,” Ty Lee frowned._ _

__“But you knew who I was talking about!” Toph chuckled, “I’ll leave you to that. She’s waiting for you.”_ _

__With that, Toph opened the door to her room and shut herself in._ _

__She’s waiting for me? Ty Lee thought, looking at Mai’s door. She was overwhelmed with nerves but she knew she had to do this. Her hand shook and she raised her fist to lightly knock on the door._ _

__“Toph, if that’s you again, I am REALLY not in the mood,” Mai called through the door._ _

__Ty Lee cracked the door open, “It’s me.”_ _

__She caught Mai’s eyes before Mai looked away, “Oh.”_ _

__Mai was sitting sideways at the foot of her bed, leaning against the bedpost._ _

__

__“I think we need to talk,” Ty Lee said as she stepped into the room, closing the door behind her._ _

__“I don’t have much to say that I haven’t already,” Mai huffed, still avoiding Ty Lee’s eyes._ _

__“I’m so sorry, Mai. I should have told you. I should’ve known that you would keep my secret. I should have trusted you,” Tears were running down Ty Lee’s cheeks._ _

__“I get why you didn’t,” Mai whispered with an unusual vulnerability, “I’m sorry I stormed off.”_ _

__“You have nothing to be sorry for,” Ty Lee stepped closer._ _

__“I do though,” Mai finally looked at her, “I probably would’ve done the same thing if I was in your situation.”_ _

__“I don’t think you would have. You’ve always been braver than me. I would never have stood up to Azula if you hadn’t first. I just knew I needed to protect you,” Now it was Ty Lee’s turn to look away, avoiding Mai’s piercing gaze._ _

__“You dove into that earth sludge in the drill when I wouldn’t,” Mai offered._ _

__“That’s because you thought it was gross, not because you were scared,” Ty Lee countered._ _

__Mai actually laughed, “I guess that’s true.”_ _

__Ty Lee looked back at Mai and Mai held out her hand. Ty Lee took it and Mai pulled her down next to her on the bed._ _

__“I never thanked you for what you did that night. You saved my life and I’m really grateful for that,” Ty Lee said, earnestly._ _

__“I owed you one,” Mai chuckled._ _

__Ty Lee leaned her head against Mai’s shoulder and Mai wrapped her arm around her._ _

__“I really have missed you so much, Mai.”_ _

__“I’ve missed you too. Do you think Zuko would mind if I stayed here for a while?” Mai asked._ _

__“I think Zuko wouldn’t even notice. He’s got Suki and Sokka now.”_ _

__“You noticed that too?” Mai laughed, “I’m happy for them.”_ _

__“Me too,” Ty Lee smiled. All she wants is for her friends to be happy._ _

__“What do we do now?” Mai asked._ _

__“We tell the others about me,” Ty Lee had already made up her mind. It was time._ _

__“What? But you said - “_ _

__“I thought about what you said about Zuko and Aang. I realized I have been stupid to think they wouldn’t do everything possible to keep the other airbenders safe. I was being stupid,” Ty Lee interrupted._ _

__Mai took Ty Lee’s hands and looked her in the eyes, “You weren’t being stupid. You were being careful because you care so much about the safety of others. It’s one of the reasons I love you.”_ _

__Before Ty Lee could fully comprehend what Mai just said, Mai was pulling her in. Ty Lee froze for a second, overwhelmed that this was finally happening and Mai stopped, her eyes carefully studying Ty Lee’s face, looking for a yes._ _

__Ty Lee answered by filling in the final gap between them. Their lips met and Ty Lee felt like she was going to explode. She reached up to run her fingers through Mai’s silky hair. Mai’s lips tasted like fruit tarts and Ty Lee never wanted to stop but she was too overcome with emotion to breathe. She pulled away and Mai blushed._ _

__“I love you, too,” Ty Lee said, breathlessly._ _

__There was a long road ahead of them, but Ty Lee knew that they could get through it together._ _

**Author's Note:**

> I may do a sequel but who knows. Kudos and comments are always appreciated <3


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